Remember sitting on the back row of Saturday morning
cinema, gawping at the courageous antics of that Spaniard
Superhero Zorro? Well now your youth may he recalled,
with Datasoft's version of Zorro, an arcade adventure
spanning 14 screens. As in any good adventure the object
is to rescue a much distressed damsel held in the clutches
of Colonel Garcia, the vlllian of the piece.
Whilst
strolling down the street one day, Zorro witnesses the
vile abduction of a fair senorita by the evil colonel.
The
key to success and an abducted Senorita in sight.
Zorro is a game designed in a similar presentation
to Datasoft's other hits Conan and Bruce Lee.
Zorro himself is an action packed monochromatic sprite
ready to defend the good and fight for the innocent,
able to run, jump, brandish a sword and pick up objects.
All the functions are accessed from the joystick, with
up for jump, diagonals for jump left and right, and
fire for pickup/drop. The different rooms take up the
whole screen except for the top two lines which contain
information on your score and how many Zorros there
are in reserve.
After
the abduction, being a superhero of brain as well as
brawn, Zorro decides it's best not to pursue the now
departed brigand and decides instead to rescue the senorita's
lace handkerchief, dropped during the tussle. Knowing
that Garcia is likely to take her to the local jail,
Zorro starts on a quest to get the objects that he needs
for the journey to the local lock up.
Our
hero checks out the bar full of drunken Banditos.
The
main problem is to get through the catacombs beneath
the Mission. Three keys are needed to get through the
maze and into the jailhouse, and can be collected once
some complex but logical puzzles have been completed.
Conveniently, any object that requires collection to
further your cause flashes on and off. To collect, Zorro's
sword must be placed over the object and the fire button
pushed. There are other items scattered around the screens
that, though not used as keys within the maze, help
you get at the keys. Collectable in the same way as
the keys, when picked up they replace Zorro's sword.
To use what you've picked up it's usually a case of
dropping the object in the right place. One of the funniest
problems to solve involves the wine bottle. Once you
manage to collect it, Zorro must be guided to the cantina
where a drunken Bandito is sitting. Upon giving
him the bottle of wine, he promptly passes out, allowing
Zorro to hop onto his belly and use it as a trampoline
lo get to a previously inaccessable platform.
The
game allows quite a bit of interaction between the main
sprite and the background. Most of the scenery can be
climbed, bounced on, or run over. In addition to prone,
inebriated Banditos (or is that Baditoes?), there's
a number of trampolines around the town which are great
fun to jump on.
As
in nearly all arcade adventures nowadays, new screens
are introduced into view once Zorro legs it off the
side of the screen. Soundwise there are various spot
effects, plus an atmospheric latin rhythm in the background.
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